H.R. 6563: Terrorist Watchlist Modification Review Act

This bill, titled the Terrorist Watchlist Modification Review Act, aims to enhance the oversight and transparency regarding how the terrorist watchlist and transnational organized crime watchlist are managed. Below are the main components of the bill:

Notification Requirements

The bill mandates that the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) inform specific congressional committees about any significant changes to the policies or procedures related to the terrorist watchlist and the transnational organized crime watchlist. This includes:

• Notifying the committees within 30 days of any material changes to the policies for adding or removing individuals from these watchlists.
• Providing a summary of the changes made to these policies.
• Responding to requests from congressional committees for existing guidelines concerning the use of these watchlists within 30 days.

Annual Reporting on U.S. Persons

The bill also requires the FBI to submit an annual report regarding U.S. persons on the terrorist watchlist. This report must be provided to the appropriate congressional committees and include:

• The total number of individuals on the watchlist at the beginning and end of the year.
• The total number of known or presumed U.S. persons on the watchlist, along with their status regarding specific additional screening measures.
• The names of any terrorist organizations the U.S. persons are suspected of being affiliated with.
• Details on which federal agencies nominated these individuals for the watchlist.

The first of these annual reports is expected by January 31, 2026, and will continue for two subsequent years.

Definitions

The bill includes definitions for key terms:

• Appropriate congressional committees refers to specific committees involved in intelligence, appropriations, judiciary, and homeland security in both the Senate and House of Representatives.
• Terrorist watchlist is defined as the Terrorist Screening Dataset or any similar list.
• Transnational organized crime watchlist refers to the list maintained under the Transnational Organized Crime Actor Detection Program or similar lists.
• United States person is defined as per the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978.

Summary

The primary goal of the bill is to improve communication and transparency surrounding the processes for handling the terrorist watchlist and related organized crime watchlists. By requiring timely notifications of policy changes and annual reporting on the status of U.S. persons on these lists, the bill aims to enhance oversight by Congress.

Relevant Companies

None found.